Wakanda Forever: Sampa The Great marvels HH
WHILE it is unclear whether Sampa The Great will appear on the full soundtrack to Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, a sequel to 2018’s Black Panther, it has been difficult not to celebrate her latest feat.
It is her latest feat because the Zambian rapper has proven to be something of a phenomenal success on the international scene.
Her latest feat sees a track from her new album soundtracking the first official trailer for the new Ryan Coogler-directed movie that will arrive in cinemas next month.
The track, titled Never Forget, features Chef 187, who raps in Bemba, her younger sister Mwanje and Tio Nason. It was the second single from Sampa’s latest album, As Above, So Below, has the input of Mag44 as the producer.
But more about that later. The story here is Never Forget soundtracking the first official trailer for the upcoming Marvel Studio’s film.
You cannot help but marvel. President Hakainde Hichilema knows the feeling.
“How amazing to hear our very own Sampa The Great, Chef 187, Tio Nason and Mwanjé on the Marvel Studios’ Black Panther: Wakanda Forever trailer,” he posted online yesterday. “We are so proud of you.”
The trailer includes snippets of scenes featuring actors Lupita Nyong’o, Letitia Wright and Danai Gurira. All the scenes are soundtracked by Never Forget, which is no ordinary song if you have followed the Zambian scene.
The song, a sonic homecoming with a message about carrying on African legacies, seeks to honour Zamrock, which is experiencing a renaissance through Emmanuel ‘Jagari’ Chanda, who fronted the Witch, the most popular band of the 1970s.
Sampa knows what she is onto. She also knows that soundtracking Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is epic. As she herself put it, this is from someone who is yet to chart on Billboard, has no viral video, no sold-out arena tour and is an independent artist.
“This is how God works,” she said.
The soundtrack to the original Black Panther was produced by Kendrick Lamar and gave rise to the hits All the Stars featuring SZA and Pray For Me on which the Weeknd featured.
In July, a three-track EP titled Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Prologue was released, featuring contributions from Tems, Amaarae and Santa Fe Klan, along with Ludwig Göransson, who has returned to compose the music for the new film.
Sampa was born in Zambia but grew up in Botswana although she built her career in Australia. Her 2017 mixtape, Birds and the BEE9, won the Australian Music Prize and gave way to her debut album, The Return, released in 2019, which earned her three ARIA Music Awards, including Best Female Artist and Best Hip-Hop Release. If you like, you can consider the ARIA Music Awards as the equivalent of Grammys in Australia.- Zambia Daily Mail